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‘Legends of Tomorrow’ Recap: River of Time

Last night’s Legend of Tomorrow, “River of Time,” opens in Ancient Egypt. Rip is in jail as Savage demands to know why he tried to kill him. Rip, of course, refuses to answer.

Back on Waverider, tensions are running high as most of the team is furious Savage isn’t dead yet. But there is good news: Rip and Jax realize that Savage’s weapon had technology far too advanced even for 2166. Savage has been traveling through time. That’s why it’s been so difficult to find him throughout history, and Savage insists that he’s playing a “far deeper game” than Rip can comprehend. But it also means the Time Council’s justification for not interfering with his plans doesn’t work anymore. So Rip eagerly plots a course for the Vanishing Point, where Savage will face justice for his crimes.

Unfortunately, Rip is too desperate since his family still dies even though Savage was captured and having Savage on board is just too dangerous. So he maxes out Waverider’s speed despite Gideon’s warnings and shorts out the time drive. That’s bad because if they can’t fix the time drive, they’ll be stuck forever in the time stream. Luckily, Rip has an auxiliary time drive on the jump ship that’s capable of a one-time trip to 2016.

Rip has Sara check to make sure Savage is still imprisoned, which is when Savage begins the first of his many mind games. He tells Sara that Rip’s obsession to save his family will be her team’s undoing.

Rip sends Jax to repair the time drive, insisting that he should be able to finish before the radiation has any adverse effect. He’s wrong. Jax is knocked out and we get a flashback to the day he left 2016: he got his dad’s old watch from his mom, then told her he’d be home for dinner but had to say goodbye to a friend first. (Remember, Martin roofied Jax into joining the team.) And on Waverider, we learn that Jax is now aging at an accelerated rate and there’s no way to reverse it.

Leonard tells Mick he has a sixth sense that things will end badly, one that’s proved right before. And I can’t say I disagree. Kendra and Ray are desperately trying to get Carter to remember who he really is – but when Kendra gets close to Carter to show him a picture of their son, he kicks her in the stomach. Furious, Ray goes to Savage and demands to learn how to free Carter’s minds. Carter continues his mind games, saying fixing Carter is akin to losing Kendra. We also learn that apparently, Kendra fell in love with Savage once after her first death – but chose Carter when she met him in that lifetime.

Ray is affected but remains sane and leaves, and we get a flashback to the day he left. He’s leaving Felicity a note when she shows up because she heard the news from Oliver. When Ray says he would have stayed for Felicity, she encourages him to find someone new on his travels. He insists he’ll be too busy saving the world.

Back on Waverider, Ray is shocked to find Kendra reciting a love poem to Carter. He breaks up with her because Savage is crazy but also right, and he’ll never be anything more than Carter’s placeholder.

Sara, Leonard, Mick and Martin are worried because Jax’s body is now that of a 63-year-old man. Sara’s worried because Rip told her that he would sell them out to save his family; in fact, he’s worried he sent Jax on a suicide mission to the time drive so he could save his family. Sara is furious that he cares more about himself than his crew. Martin is worried about Jax’s health. And Leonard and Mick are worried that Jax is just the first victim of Rip’s desperation.

So Leonard and Mick tell Rip they’re leaving; he agrees because the trip has always been voluntary. Sara stays because she’s “never been one to run from a fight.” We then get another flashback: Sara visits Nyssa in prison and wants to break her out. Nyssa refuses to let her, saying that if she loves her, she’ll leave and lead a life unburned by her past.

Martin asks Savage to share his immortality with Jax, the way he did with his follower’s when he killed Carter. Savage says it was Carter’s blood, which causes Martin to realize that Savage is manipulating them all. This also apparently gives Martin an idea (although I don’t see a connection): he realizes sending Jax back to 2016 should theoretically reverse his condition. Jax refuses to go, so Martin roofies him and forces him – which is exactly the way Jax got onto this trip in the first place. He tells Jax he’s already lived his life and asks him to apologize to Clarissa because she deserved a proper goodbye.

We see what Martin means in another flashback: Martin leaves 2016 by basically blowing off Clarissa’s request for a lunch date. He does say before leaving, “You – you know that I love you. There’s nothing I do that isn’t driven by that very thought.”

After this, emotions are running way high. Mick and Leonard are furious they can’t go home since Martin sent the jump ship away. And Ray, taunted by Savage for his heartbreak, ends up opening the prison and punching him in the face. This is obviously a really bad idea since Savage knocks Ray unconscious and walks out.

This news is a blow to the rest of the team when they hear it after Ray wakes up, since they’ve just successfully rebooted the time drive. It’s especially bad since Savage frees Carter AND takes Gideon offline – which is bad because she was the key to getting them out of the time stream.

Rip sends most of the team to go after Carter and Savage, while keeping Martin as engineer and Sara as navigator since she can make tough calls under extreme pressure. Apparently, the time stream is like a river and Rip has maps to the Vanishing Point in case of emergency.

Kendra goes after Carter, while the rest of the team goes after Savage. Rip somehow realizes they’re in trouble and goes to help them because he doesn’t want to put Sara or Martin in jeopardy. Carter is in the midst of beating up Kendra when Rip saves her, taking a laser blast to save her life. But it’s not enough and Carter holds her while Savage is about to kill her. Luckily, this is the moment when he finally remembers she’s his soulmate and he attacks Savage with his wings out. So Savage shoots him – which is enough to send a furious Kendra after Savage. The fight ends with Savage recaptured and Carter luckily still alive.

It should have been a happy-ish ending. The team makes it to the Vanishing Point. Rip regains the trust of his team. And Kendra and Ray part on somewhat amicable terms, with Ray thanking Kendra for proving to him that it is still possible for him to want to spend the rest of his life with someone else.

Unfortunately, there’s a big problem: when Rip proves to the Time Council that Savage has been manipulating the timeline, they just send Savage straight back to 2166. They’ve been in league with him the whole time! And they send everybody into prison – everyone, that is, except for Leonard and Sara. They’re playing cards when Leonard has a bad feeling and hides from the guards. Smart man!

The episode ends with Savage taunting Rip in his cell, saying he’s looking forward to meeting his family. Ugh.

Honestly, I wasn’t a huge fan of “River of Time.” I did like getting some insight into Savage’s manipulations and psychopathy, like his insistence that Carter “stole” Kendra as if she isn’t capable of making her own choices. I also thought that this was the first time I really felt like the Legends worked as a team in their fight against Savage. Plus, there was a hilarious moment when Savage asks who they think they are since he’s a “destroyer of empires,” and Leonard responds, “Leonard Snart, robber of ATMs.” And I really loved the look of the Vanishing Point.

But all in all, “River of Time” was both confusing and illogical. Martin knew Leonard and Mick wanted the jump ship, so why did he send Jax back without them? Would it have had any outcome on Jax’s health? Why did Ray open up Savage’s cell?? I get that he was angry, but that was literally the DUMBEST decision ever. This guy took over the world and has lived thousands of years and you think you can beat him in a fight? Also, in retrospect, I’m surprised that it never crossed Rip’s (or my) mind that the Time Council would be in league with Savage. It just makes so much sense! Of course that’s why they’ve been so against Rip taking him out. Although I have to say, I’m really curious why Savage is so much better than whatever other terrible things the Time Council is supposed to be preventing.

My final two notes: Kendra and Ray’s breakup is the least surprising twist of all time. That relationship was doomed in advance! I totally get the whole fate vs. free choice debate, but since Kendra and Carter have fallen in love every lifetime for 2,000 years, I think this was pretty stupid on both Kendra and Ray’s part…especially since the chances of Kendra meeting Carter again were highly likely since they’re TRAVELING THROUGH TIME. Also, Savage gets Rip to confess how he got out of Ancient Egyptian jail since this might be their “final goodbye.” But Savage knows the Time Council is going to bail him out, which means he just wants Rip to never get out of prison. Does this mean they might head back to Ancient Egypt? I hope they do, because how cool would that be!

Last night’s Legend of Tomorrow, “River of Time,” opens in Ancient Egypt. Rip is in jail as Savage demands to know why he tried to kill him. Rip, of course, refuses to answer.

Back on Waverider, tensions are running high as most of the team is furious Savage isn’t dead yet. But there is good news: Rip and Jax realize that Savage’s weapon had technology far too advanced even for 2166. Savage has been traveling through time. That’s why it’s been so difficult to find him throughout history, and Savage insists that he’s playing a “far deeper game” than Rip can comprehend. But it also means the Time Council’s justification for not interfering with his plans doesn’t work anymore. So Rip eagerly plots a course for the Vanishing Point, where Savage will face justice for his crimes.

Unfortunately, Rip is too desperate since his family still dies even though Savage was captured and having Savage on board is just too dangerous. So he maxes out Waverider’s speed despite Gideon’s warnings and shorts out the time drive. That’s bad because if they can’t fix the time drive, they’ll be stuck forever in the time stream. Luckily, Rip has an auxiliary time drive on the jump ship that’s capable of a one-time trip to 2016.

Rip has Sara check to make sure Savage is still imprisoned, which is when Savage begins the first of his many mind games. He tells Sara that Rip’s obsession to save his family will be her team’s undoing.

Rip sends Jax to repair the time drive, insisting that he should be able to finish before the radiation has any adverse effect. He’s wrong. Jax is knocked out and we get a flashback to the day he left 2016: he got his dad’s old watch from his mom, then told her he’d be home for dinner but had to say goodbye to a friend first. (Remember, Martin roofied Jax into joining the team.) And on Waverider, we learn that Jax is now aging at an accelerated rate and there’s no way to reverse it.

Leonard tells Mick he has a sixth sense that things will end badly, one that’s proved right before. And I can’t say I disagree. Kendra and Ray are desperately trying to get Carter to remember who he really is – but when Kendra gets close to Carter to show him a picture of their son, he kicks her in the stomach. Furious, Ray goes to Savage and demands to learn how to free Carter’s minds. Carter continues his mind games, saying fixing Carter is akin to losing Kendra. We also learn that apparently, Kendra fell in love with Savage once after her first death – but chose Carter when she met him in that lifetime.

Ray is affected but remains sane and leaves, and we get a flashback to the day he left. He’s leaving Felicity a note when she shows up because she heard the news from Oliver. When Ray says he would have stayed for Felicity, she encourages him to find someone new on his travels. He insists he’ll be too busy saving the world.

Back on Waverider, Ray is shocked to find Kendra reciting a love poem to Carter. He breaks up with her because Savage is crazy but also right, and he’ll never be anything more than Carter’s placeholder.

Sara, Leonard, Mick and Martin are worried because Jax’s body is now that of a 63-year-old man. Sara’s worried because Rip told her that he would sell them out to save his family; in fact, he’s worried he sent Jax on a suicide mission to the time drive so he could save his family. Sara is furious that he cares more about himself than his crew. Martin is worried about Jax’s health. And Leonard and Mick are worried that Jax is just the first victim of Rip’s desperation.

So Leonard and Mick tell Rip they’re leaving; he agrees because the trip has always been voluntary. Sara stays because she’s “never been one to run from a fight.” We then get another flashback: Sara visits Nyssa in prison and wants to break her out. Nyssa refuses to let her, saying that if she loves her, she’ll leave and lead a life unburned by her past.

Martin asks Savage to share his immortality with Jax, the way he did with his follower’s when he killed Carter. Savage says it was Carter’s blood, which causes Martin to realize that Savage is manipulating them all. This also apparently gives Martin an idea (although I don’t see a connection): he realizes sending Jax back to 2016 should theoretically reverse his condition. Jax refuses to go, so Martin roofies him and forces him – which is exactly the way Jax got onto this trip in the first place. He tells Jax he’s already lived his life and asks him to apologize to Clarissa because she deserved a proper goodbye.

We see what Martin means in another flashback: Martin leaves 2016 by basically blowing off Clarissa’s request for a lunch date. He does say before leaving, “You – you know that I love you. There’s nothing I do that isn’t driven by that very thought.”

After this, emotions are running way high. Mick and Leonard are furious they can’t go home since Martin sent the jump ship away. And Ray, taunted by Savage for his heartbreak, ends up opening the prison and punching him in the face. This is obviously a really bad idea since Savage knocks Ray unconscious and walks out.

This news is a blow to the rest of the team when they hear it after Ray wakes up, since they’ve just successfully rebooted the time drive. It’s especially bad since Savage frees Carter AND takes Gideon offline – which is bad because she was the key to getting them out of the time stream.

Rip sends most of the team to go after Carter and Savage, while keeping Martin as engineer and Sara as navigator since she can make tough calls under extreme pressure. Apparently, the time stream is like a river and Rip has maps to the Vanishing Point in case of emergency.

Kendra goes after Carter, while the rest of the team goes after Savage. Rip somehow realizes they’re in trouble and goes to help them because he doesn’t want to put Sara or Martin in jeopardy. Carter is in the midst of beating up Kendra when Rip saves her, taking a laser blast to save her life. But it’s not enough and Carter holds her while Savage is about to kill her. Luckily, this is the moment when he finally remembers she’s his soulmate and he attacks Savage with his wings out. So Savage shoots him – which is enough to send a furious Kendra after Savage. The fight ends with Savage recaptured and Carter luckily still alive.

It should have been a happy-ish ending. The team makes it to the Vanishing Point. Rip regains the trust of his team. And Kendra and Ray part on somewhat amicable terms, with Ray thanking Kendra for proving to him that it is still possible for him to want to spend the rest of his life with someone else.

Unfortunately, there’s a big problem: when Rip proves to the Time Council that Savage has been manipulating the timeline, they just send Savage straight back to 2166. They’ve been in league with him the whole time! And they send everybody into prison – everyone, that is, except for Leonard and Sara. They’re playing cards when Leonard has a bad feeling and hides from the guards. Smart man!

The episode ends with Savage taunting Rip in his cell, saying he’s looking forward to meeting his family. Ugh.

Honestly, I wasn’t a huge fan of “River of Time.” I did like getting some insight into Savage’s manipulations and psychopathy, like his insistence that Carter “stole” Kendra as if she isn’t capable of making her own choices. I also thought that this was the first time I really felt like the Legends worked as a team in their fight against Savage. Plus, there was a hilarious moment when Savage asks who they think they are since he’s a “destroyer of empires,” and Leonard responds, “Leonard Snart, robber of ATMs.” And I really loved the look of the Vanishing Point.

But all in all, “River of Time” was both confusing and illogical. Martin knew Leonard and Mick wanted the jump ship, so why did he send Jax back without them? Would it have had any outcome on Jax’s health? Why did Ray open up Savage’s cell?? I get that he was angry, but that was literally the DUMBEST decision ever. This guy took over the world and has lived thousands of years and you think you can beat him in a fight? Also, in retrospect, I’m surprised that it never crossed Rip’s (or my) mind that the Time Council would be in league with Savage. It just makes so much sense! Of course that’s why they’ve been so against Rip taking him out. Although I have to say, I’m really curious why Savage is so much better than whatever other terrible things the Time Council is supposed to be preventing.

My final two notes: Kendra and Ray’s breakup is the least surprising twist of all time. That relationship was doomed in advance! I totally get the whole fate vs. free choice debate, but since Kendra and Carter have fallen in love every lifetime for 2,000 years, I think this was pretty stupid on both Kendra and Ray’s part…especially since the chances of Kendra meeting Carter again were highly likely since they’re TRAVELING THROUGH TIME. Also, Savage gets Rip to confess how he got out of Ancient Egyptian jail since this might be their “final goodbye.” But Savage knows the Time Council is going to bail him out, which means he just wants Rip to never get out of prison. Does this mean they might head back to Ancient Egypt? I hope they do, because how cool would that be!